The Trash Sect's Ascension - chapter 3

Jiang Li was brought back from the mortal realm by Master.

At that time, famine and plague ravaged the human world, leaving devastation everywhere and corpses scattered across the land.

Master was traveling outside, riding the Green Donkey, when he happened to witness Jiang Li, her hands and feet bound by a group of people, about to be lowered into a boiling cauldron.

Master saved her with a bag of millet, brought her back to Luo Xia Mountain, and accepted her as his youngest Disciple.

Jiang Li possessed remarkable talent and cultivated diligently, day and night without rest, advancing at a breathtaking pace.

She was like a sponge that had been dry for ages, desperately absorbing the sect’s resources and Master’s attention.

Top-tier cultivation techniques, spirit beasts and spirit plants, pills and magical treasures-she was always the first to choose.

Later, ignoring Master’s repeated warnings, she forcibly broke through in secret, resulting in damage to her Dantian, making her unable to gather spiritual energy ever again.

And for a cultivator, being unable to gather energy meant the end of the path to immortality.

Only then did she regret it, crying and begging Master to save her, promising that she would shoulder the responsibility of revitalizing the sect in the future.

Master was always soft-hearted, and remembering her pitiful background, he ventured alone into Qilin Cave, risking his life to retrieve a Return to Origin Herb.

Jiang Li turned misfortune into blessing-not only was her Dantian repaired, but she also successfully advanced in cultivation.

But Master’s heart meridian was injured, his cultivation plummeted, he coughed up blood daily, and his already limited lifespan became even more precarious.

I went to Jiang Li to ask for the Snow Soul Pill.

It was found years ago when Third Junior Brother explored the Void Secret Realm.

It was meant as an offering to Master, but Jiang Li forcibly took it, claiming her heart meridian had been weak since childhood.

At the time, everyone laughed it off; no one minded.

Though the Snow Soul Pill was precious, we had seen things even more valuable.

She wanted it, so we gave it to her.

But now, things are different.

The Snow Soul Pill can repair the heart meridian.

Although it cannot fully cure Master’s injury, it could buy me more time to search the major secret realms for useful pills and spirit herbs.

I hadn’t expected Jiang Li to refuse.

She said she had already taken it years ago.

But she didn’t know that after taking the Snow Soul Pill, the body emits a unique fragrance for three months.

And now, her body is exuding the distinctive scent of the Snow Soul Pill.

The fragrance is so rich-it’s obvious she just took it!

The only effect of the Snow Soul Pill is to heal the heart meridian.

She is uninjured and in perfect health; taking it is utterly useless, a complete waste of the pill.

Yet even so, she would rather consume it herself.

Second Junior Sister was furious on the spot, hefting her heavy blacksmith’s hammer, ready to smash Jiang Li’s face.

Jiang Li’s long sleeves fluttered as she spun lightly, landing gracefully atop a flowering tree.

Her white robe outshone the snow, her long black hair cascading like a waterfall.

Bathed in cold moonlight, she stood on the flower branches, her brows and eyes shimmering.

“Master retrieved the Return to Origin Herb for me, but he was not purely kind-hearted. He expected me to revitalize the sect and fulfill his long-cherished wish. Everyone gets what they need; we owe each other nothing. Why should I give up the Snow Soul Pill?”

“Senior Sister, are you so angry because you’re jealous that Master favors me more?”

“You can only blame yourselves-as Senior Brother and Senior Sister, you’re obsessed with mundane affairs, blacksmithing and gardening, lacking ambition. Your cultivation has stagnated for years, wasting the sect’s resources for nothing.”

Footnote:
1. Dantian(丹田): Dantian is a concept in traditional Chinese medicine, martial arts, and Daoist practice. It refers to the ‘energy center’ or ‘elixir field’ located in the lower abdomen, which is considered the focal point for internal energy (qi) cultivation.